Stern invited for MOA game

MANILA, Philippines - It took over a year to finally confirm the first NBA game ever to be played in the country and SM Prime Holdings, Inc. president Hans Sy said he will invite Commissioner David Stern to witness the preseason game between the Houston Rockets and Indiana Pacers at the SM Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena on Oct. 10.

Sy broached the idea of staging an NBA contest at the MOA Arena to Stern during the NBA All-Star Weekend in Orlando last year. He said it won’t be a money-making event. No amount was disclosed as to a budget for staging the game but Sy said the MOA Arena group hopes to sign up sponsors to defray expenses and subsidize the cost of tickets. Sy called it a “branding” event as the game will surely establish the MOA Arena as a world-class venue.

“This is definitely sports history in the making,” said Sy. “The Filipinos are among the biggest basketball fans in the world. It is only fitting that we bring the NBA preseason game to Philippine shores. And SM will make it happen at the MOA Arena.”

Sy said the game will showcase the MOA Arena’s capability to stage a major international sporting event. He said last year’s Legends game featuring Dennis Rodman and Scottie Pippen was an independent production and not an NBA sanctioned project so it wasn’t a test case of whether or not the MOA Arena could stage an actual NBA contest.

Sy said as a basketball fan, he’s excited to watch stars like Jeremy Lin in action. There are schedule and logistical constraints in holding a regular season game in Southeast Asia but Sy said he will try to arrange it in the future. Although it doesn’t count in the league standings, a preseason game is important because coaches use the opportunity to evaluate players before confirming a final roster.

In announcing the game last Tuesday, Sy was joined by three Hong Kong-based NBA Asia executives – senior vice president and managing director Scott Levy, vice president of business development and marketing partnerships Francesco Suarez and director and country manager of the Philippines Carlo Singson – at the MOA Arena.

Levy, who has worked 13 years with the NBA and developed a network of 215 countries to distribute NBA TV programming globally, said it’s time Manila got a live taste of the NBA experience.  â€œI’ve seen the Philippines grow as an NBA market through the years,” he said. “The fans are amazing. This is a dream come true to bring the NBA live to Manila. The MOA Arena is a great facility and we’re looking forward to an exciting event.”

Suarez was in Manila to launch this year’s Jr. NBA program at the British School recently and is at the forefront of overseeing Asia-Pacific business development ventures. He said after the Rockets and Pacers play in Manila, they will do a rematch in Taipei on Oct. 13 before heading back to the US. The Taipei game will bring Lin back to his roots.

Singson said both Houston and Indiana will travel with complete retinues. “They’ll bring their players, coaching staff, dancers, mascot, trainers, executives and personnel,” he said. “Legends normally come out for preseason games so I don’t expect anything different. As for Commissioner Stern, we don’t know yet his plans.”

When Cleveland and Orlando played in a preseason game at the Venetian Arena in Macau in 2007, the teams came with nine Magic dancers, Orlando mascot Stuff, Cleveland mascot Moondog, former football star and NBA broadcaster Ahmad Rashad, five hip-hop breakdancers, Legends Rick Barry, George Gervin and Darryl Dawkins, Stern and deputy commissioner Adam Silver. The 11,000-seat Venetian Arena was filled to capacity. The MOA Arena can accommodate over 20,000 fans and a sellout for the NBA is expected.